12,000 people with AIDS in state, 55,000 HIV positive

PATNA: Hundreds of HIV positive people, including men, women and children, wearing black badges, staged demonstration in the state capital on the World AIDS Day on Saturday to protest against the arrest of president of Bihar Network for People Living with HIV/AIDS Society (BNP+), Gyan Ranjan.

Ranjan, who is in jail since November 14, is said to have been arrested for demanding adequate allocation of drugs at the 10 antiretroviral therapy (ART) centres in the state. The demonstrators claimed that the ART centres lacked sufficient doctors. They accused the Bihar State AIDS Control Society (BSACS) of ill-treating the HIV positive people.

There are around 12,000 people with AIDS in Bihar, while another 55,000 are HIV positive. The largest numbers of HIV positive people are in Patna district. There are 207 integrated counselling and testing centres where people are tested for HIV and counselled accordingly. Bihar has sought help from the Centre for making arrangements for HIV/AIDS tests at every health centre across the state.

BNP+ members from UP, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Maharashtra, Delhi, Punjab, Haryana and Rajasthan participated in the demonstration. Supreme Court lawyer Anand Grover termed the arrest of Ranjan a clear violation of fundamental rights to speech. "Continued denial of basic medicines and services to HIV positive people is a denial of the fundamental rights to them," said Manoj Pardeshi from New Delhi. Secretary, BNP+, Raj Kumar Singh said not only doctors do not come to the ART centres, even basic paediatric medicines are not available for the children found HIV positive.

Sunita from Muzaffarpur said she has to travel 35kms to the ART centre for drug. She complained that drug is available only after 4-5 days of her visit. "How can I manage with this," she said.

Naresh Yadav of International treatment preparedness coalition of India (ITPC-India), New Delhi, said Ranjan's arrest speaks of Emergency-like situation where the government wants to suppress all the dissenting voice. This is happening in the backdrop of the state government's announcement of a slew of measures for people with HIV\AIDS in the state which include starting pension scheme for them and providing employment.

Pension scheme was announced by deputy CM Sushil Kumar Modi while inaugurating an awareness exhibition on HIV/AIDS on the Red Ribbon Express, in Patna, in September this year. The government feels grant of pension will embolden people living with AIDS or HIV positive.